At least 31 people, including 16 police officers, were killed in a bomb and gun attack at a police compound in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwestern Pakistan.

According to AFP, local time on the 19th, a car laden with explosives rammed into the "Old Police Lines" police compound near a mosque in the city of Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province the previous afternoon and exploded.

Armed assailants then broke in and opened fire, leading to a shootout with police.

An anonymous police official told AFP that at least 31 people, including 16 police officers, were killed and about 100 others were injured in the attack.

The official said that several militants were still hiding inside the police compound, adding, "Gunfights with them have been ongoing since late last night.

The exact number remains unclear."

Police reportedly shot and killed at least six of the militants.

According to a local health official, the majority of the injured were police officers, and some of them were in critical condition.

Many of the casualties were reportedly hit while praying at the mosque at the time of the attack.

Photos from the scene showed that the outer wall of the police headquarters collapsed and the mosque building was severely damaged.

Following the attack, the armed group Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) released a statement denying responsibility.

However, a local militant group known to be linked to the TTP, "Ittihad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan," claimed responsibility for the attack.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack in a statement and expressed deep sorrow and regret over the casualties.

He then instructed authorities to provide the best possible medical support to the injured and to accelerate relief operations.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed regret, stating, "Completely eradicating 'Fitna al-Khawarij' (a derogatory term for the TTP) and terrorists operating with foreign support is essential for national security."

The TTP aims to overthrow the Pakistani government and establish a state based on Islamic law, or sharia.

Although they are a separate organization from the Afghan Taliban, they share similar ideologies and have long maintained a cooperative relationship, carrying out various terrorist activities by crossing into Pakistan while maintaining major hideouts in Afghanistan.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)